


can you believe (it's magic)?

by vatonages



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Gen, Human Mark, M/M, Macabre, Magic, Mild Gore, Vampires, Witches, i dont know what to describe this as, treated comically
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-20
Updated: 2020-04-20
Packaged: 2021-03-02 01:14:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,065
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23746663
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vatonages/pseuds/vatonages
Summary: It’s funny. Mark is as human as they come. He doesn’t know anything about magic, or rituals, or the paranormal, but he can feel something when Jeno grabs his hand. Something humans don’t have a name for. Some kind of energy. Something glittery and dark blue and cool all the way to the bone. Something that’s almost...magical.Or, Mark is a pizza delivery boy that gets lost while on a delivery and ends up in another dimension.
Relationships: Lee Jeno/Mark Lee
Comments: 1
Kudos: 65





	can you believe (it's magic)?

**Author's Note:**

> hello! i found this in my google docs from almost a year ago and i always love unsettling things that involve supernatural elements so i wanted to have fun and try something myself. i just added a little bit to it to finish it up and even though it's strange i hope someone enjoys it!

The sun is hanging unusually low in the sky. The sky, which is a bruised horizon of tragic blues and sickly purples, like someone has given God a black eye and now Mark is staring up at it. It’s nowhere near healed. No, it’s getting worse. The infected sun. Mark hopes it’s not contagious.

“Um,” he says to himself, smiling nervously, and then gets up. He can ignore it for now. He pulls down the curtain. The sky. What a gift, the beauty of nature and all that. He’s lucky that he gets to see it. Really, he’s so lucky.

  
  


Jaemin is hanging upside down, the way he always does, leathery wings wrapped around him like a cloak, like the cheap costumes sold at the Halloween store.

[“People pay a lot of money to look like you do, you know,” he’d said. Jaemin hadn’t looked surprised.

“People are always trying to be me,” he explained tiredly. “One day they’ll realize it’s impossible.” Mark laughed, always did that when he didn’t quite understand. But he was trying to understand. He tried every day.

“Maybe one day,” he said.]

Donghyuck tries to hang upside down, but it’s hard.

“We don’t have anything for…” he gestures with wild hands, struggling to find the word. “...This,” he settles on. 

“Don’t you guys fly on brooms or something?” Jaemin asks, and Donghyuck smacks him upside the head.

“No, we don’t fly on  _ brooms.  _ And what does that have to do with hanging upside down, anyway?”

“I don’t know. I was just thinking about flying, I guess. And don’t hit me! I’ll chew your hand off!”

“I’ll just grow another one. See if I care,”

“Guys,” Mark tries to stop their bickering, and they both look at him, eyes glowing in unison. One set purple, one red.

“You’re awake,” they say, and Mark shudders.

“I sure am,” he says, but doesn’t sound particularly happy about it.

“Hyung!” Jeno says. He appears out of nowhere, the way he often does. 

“You’re dripping blood all over the floor,” Renjun scolds. He’s stirring something in the kitchen. It smells like bleach, old peaches, and cinnamon. It could be breakfast, or it could be a potion. It’s anyone’s guess, but it makes Mark’s stomach lurch with nausea.

Renjun’s right. There’s a gaping wound in Jeno’s stomach that he doesn’t seem at all concerned about. Jaemin licks his lips. 

“Jeno, you’re-” Mark begins, visibly paleing. He’s not hungry at all, for breakfast or anything else.

“Aw, hyung. Are you worried? It’s fine. Look,” he says, and opens his robes. Above the wound, which is even more gruesome than Mark thought, there’s a swirling vortex. It’s small, and makes static sounds like an old radio, the way Mark thinks it would sound if it was the last remaining form of communication during the apocalypse, a cry into damp, grey nothingness.

“I was trying to pick up Chenle, but I made a mistake going through the dimensions. I don’t know where this leads to, but...Best not to find out, I suppose. Jaemin,” Jeno says, and Jaemin opens up his wings, which smack Donghyuck in the face.

“Ow!” he says.

“You were too close!”

“Your wings are too big.”

“Personal preference,” Jaemin shoots back.

“Clean me up?” Jeno asks, and Jaemin flies over. Mark has to look away for this part, Jaemin’s tongue slipping all over Jeno’s stomach, and Mark can actually see organs and intestines if he looks for too long, which is why he tries to stare at the wall. There’s wet sounds, and Jeno laughing.

“It tickles,” he says. “Thanks!” Jaemin steps back and it’s clean, a huge hole in his stomach but no more blood, no mess.

“Why isn’t he bleeding anymore?” Mark asks, unable to help himself. “There’s a huge wound, I don’t- What?”

“I closed the wound. Vampire saliva. It’s like a big bandage.”

“And the chunk of his body that’s missing?”

“Just give it a minute. We’ll deal with that after the vortex closes.”

“I’m never sending you to get Chenle ever again,” Renjun says, smacking Jeno on the back of the head with a wooden spoon.

“Hey! You were mixing something with that! I don’t need you dripping potion on me. Don’t you see that enough things are wrong with me? Ah!” Jeno cries out with wide eyes as Renjun stares at him, doubling over and clutching his stomach. Mark’s eyes get even wider, if that’s possible at this point, wondering if there’s any way he could help.

“Don’t be a baby. I’m closing the portal. Why would you leave it open like that?” Jeno pouts.

“I didn’t know how to close it. Doyoung didn’t teach me that stuff.” Renjun groans.

“PG magic. What good does that do? The world is full of horrors and treachery. Ignore that, Mark,” Renjun adds as an afterthought. “Really, full of horrible things. Horrors you can’t even imagine,”

“Like Donghyuck’s face-” Jaemin gets out, before Donghyuck turns him into his bat form.

“Can you go hang out in the attic or something? You’re being extra annoying today, and that’s really saying something considering I’ve known you for thousands of years. Seriously, get out of here.”

“Looks like someone is jealous they didn’t get to lick Jeno’s wound.” Mark shudders. With his mouth taken away, Jaemin has to say it telepathically, and his voice is echoey and too close, like the sound waves are tickling Mark’s brain.

“Guys,” Mark begs. “Can we please stop discussing it? It makes me nauseous.”

“Donghyuck!” Renjun scolds. “You’re letting the sun fall. It’s too early.”

“Can’t we just call it a day?” he whines. “It’s heavy!”

“No!” Renjun says. “Pick it back up!”

“So it wasn’t just me, then?” Mark asks aloud to nobody in particular. “It really was low?”

“Donghyuck is lazy sometimes,” Jeno laughs before Donghyuck pinches his side. “Ah!”

“I wouldn’t laugh,” Donghyuck says. “You’re gonna have to carry the moon,” Jeno shrugs.

“I don’t mind,” he says pleasantly. “The mental pressure from the spell makes my head kind of hurt. In a good way.” 

“Um,” Mark says nervously. Jeno beams at him. 

“Are you scared, hyung?” Jeno acts softly. “You don’t have to be. Hey, Donghyuck? Drop the sun, okay? I wanna show Mark how I hold up the moon,” Donghyuck looks to Renjun for approval, who gives a curt nod. Donghyuck’s eyes widen as he turns back to Jeno.

“Okay, sure. Makes my life easier. Guess Renjun is making dinner instead of breakfast, then,”

“I’m not _cooking,_ you dummy. I’m making potions. Fend for yourself.”

“You’re  _ so  _ mean,” Donghyuck whines. “We’ll starve!”

“I’m not your mom. Figure something out,” Donghyuck flops down onto the couch and sighs. Jeno smiles and grabs Mark’s hand.   
  


* * *

Mark is holding a very hot pizza in his hand, the heat coming through the material of the canvas bag it’s in, trying not to drop it as he stares at a map on his phone. The house has to be somewhere around here, but his map keeps recalculating and giving him different directions. It’s never done this before, and Mark is getting frustrated, but it’s not like he can just leave without giving them their pizza. They’d complain, and he can’t really afford to lose this job right now.

He walks the way the arrow is pointing, not bothering to look up anymore. Everything around here looks the same. It’s a part of town he’s never been to, and it’s messing with his head. It’s stopped recalculating. Maybe he’ll get it this time. The arrow is moving closer and closer to the destination, and Mark thinks to himself  _ Finally. _

It starts pouring.

There’s something wrong with the rain. It’s warm, and by the time it hits the ground it sizzles like oil in a pan and then turns to steam. Mark looks around himself, goosebumps raised all over his skin, but he tries to just keep following the path. He can get out of here soon as long as he finds that house. 

Something tells him to look up, and when he does, the moon is glowing a weird color, slightly green, like it’s sick, and instead of the normal craters on its surface, a hollow grin. Mark takes a deep, shaky breath and walks faster. 

He walks without looking ahead, right down an alley. When he finally looks up, it’s dead end, but the phone is saying he’s arrived. Mark curses. 

“This doesn’t make any sense,” he says out loud, looks up to the green moon and back at the wall in front of him again. It’s not a wall. There’s a door now, and Mark feels cold wind brush against the back of his neck. He just wants to get out of here.

He knocks, waits, and knocks again. 

Something answers, no visible form, throwing the door open and pulling him inside. The pizza doesn’t make it in. 

  
  
  


* * *

It’s funny. Mark is as human as they come. He doesn’t know anything about magic, or rituals, or the paranormal, but he can feel something when Jeno grabs his hand. Something humans don’t have a name for. Some kind of energy. Something glittery and dark blue and cool all the way to the bone. Something that’s almost...magical.

“Come with me,” Jeno says, excitement in his voice. He runs outside, still holding Mark’s hand as Mark struggles to keep up with him. They run up winding stairs that go up the side of the house, stairs that Mark has never noticed before, and after what feels like centuries of going up and up and up, they reach the top. 

“Woah!” Mark exclaims. “It’s  _ hot  _ up here!” Jeno laughs. 

“We  _ are  _ right beside the sun, hyung. Don’t look, okay? It’ll be bright. I won’t let you get burnt,” Mark shuts his eyes, turning his head to the side. Through the thin skin of his eyelids, he sees orange and red. He can feel the incredible heat, and then it’s gone. 

“Now,” Jeno breathes. “Look now,” Jeno’s not looking at him, eyes focused on the sky, arms reaching out towards it. Slowly, the clean and beautiful light of the moon fills the sky. It’s not like the mortal realm moon, the craters and cuts and imperfections. It’s nothing like the sickly moon that had grinned down at him that night either. This is a glorious sphere of pure white, a cosmic disco ball, the glowy goddess of space.

And yet prettier still than the way it bathes the city in crystal light, is the reflection of it in Jeno’s dark eyes. 

It keeps rising, and it’s there again, that energy. Mark swears he can feel it, all the effort that goes into lifting the moon. Jeno lifts his arms and the moon goes up with them. 

“Now, I have to hold it,” Jeno says. “But now that it’s up, this part isn’t too hard. I just can’t forget about it.” He lowers his arms. “Ready to go back in?”

“Yeah,” Mark breathes absentmindedly. “Jeno, this is- It’s beautiful.” Jeno smiles, teeth pearly white. It only lasts one, gorgeous moment. Then it’s gone.

“Is something wrong?” Mark asks.

“Hyung,” Jeno says. “I know that we scare you. Earlier, I saw- We’re going to find a way back to your realm, okay? We’re all looking, looking all the time.” Mark nods.

“It’s okay. I don’t want you to think I don’t like you guys or that I hate it here. I don’t. It’s just that I’m a human,” Mark laughs. “Things like that, well, I’m not used to them,”

“And how could you be?” Jeno says, mostly to himself. His voice is hushed with sympathy, his eyebrows furrowed.

“Yeah, so there’s that. But I really like you guys. And this,” Mark says, gesturing to the moon, bigger than he ever imagined it could be. “How else would I have seen  _ this?” _

“There’s more,” Jeno says, eager. “I can show you so many beautiful, magical things. Join me in the greenhouse?” Mark blinks big eyes at him.

“You never let anyone into the greenhouse,” Jeno laughs.

“It’s not safe for people to go in alone. They don’t know what they’re doing, you least of all. It’s okay if you’re with me.” 

“Okay,” Mark says. “But just, do we  _ have  _ to go down all those stairs?” Jeno’s eyes twinkle, and then he’s taking Mark’s arms and wrapping them around himself, walking forward into a limp embrace.

“Close your eyes,” Jeno says. Mark’s heart is racing, and he swallows nervously, but he does as he’s told. Jeno smells nice, feels right, pressed against his chest like this. He’s really never had an excuse to hug Jeno before this, but now he wishes he had. 

“I mean it,” Jeno says gently. “You won’t be able to unsee any of the things in the inbetween if you open them,” 

“Jesus,” Mark whispers. “Message received,”

“Okay,” Jeno says. He squeezes Mark a little tighter, and then there’s the scent of a candle that’s just been blown out, that burnt chemical smell, distant screaming, someone singing in a high, clear voice. Mark doesn’t want to know, can’t know. 

  
  
  


* * *

Mark wakes up in a house. A mansion, more like. It looks old but expensive, not that he’s an expert or anything. It’s his brother that’s the architect. He could describe it way better, but Mark’s just a guy in Marketing. 

“Hungry?” a voice says, a face right over his face, peering down at him. Mark jumps, trying not to scream.

“Don’t do  _ that,”  _ A different voice says, as Mark is trembling on the carpet. “You’ll scare him to death,”

“And what’s so bad about that?” comes the reply. “He’ll be like us,” They get shushed by a third person, and fall silently obediently. 

  
  
  
  


* * *

“We’re here,” Jeno announces. “Open them!” and Mark does, cracking open one eye at a time, distrusting. Jeno laughs at his expression, removing himself from Mark’s arms. It’s a pity.

“These,” Jeno says, gesturing to the entirety of the building with a sweeping arm motion. “Are my babies,”

“You’re a...nature witch?” Mark asks, confirming more than asking. Jeno nods.

“Guys,” he says. “We have a guest! Mark hyung has come to visit,” Mark hears thousands of little cries, cheers and screams and sobs that make his ears feel like they might explode. Jeno laughs at them, fondness in his eyes.

“They’re excited,” he explains. “They’ve heard of you but they’ve never been able to see you,”

“We’ve heard a  _ lot _ about you _ ,”  _ comes a deep voice. When Mark finds the source, it’s a cute looking plant that almost looks like a daisy. Jeno hisses at it to be quiet, squinting at it, and it expands into what must be its true form, a giant tangle of chains and teeth and things like knives. 

“Azazel loves to tease. Don’t listen to anything she says.”

“Azazel,” Mark repeats, pretending not to be shocked. “You named her that?” Jeno tilts his head in confusion.

“I didn’t name her,” he says. “She named herself. They all did,” Mark’s mouth opens to say something, but Jeno is already leading him further into the greenhouse.

“Renjun has me get him stuff from here sometimes,” he says, rubbing under a wiggly tulip’s chin. “You know, for potions. That’s why I have this, and they know it too, that they’ll be used for spells. It’s really not sad! It’s not sad, you know? Magic does not get destroyed, just transferred or transformed, but it’s still sad. I like the form they’re in now. I want to keep them with me,” 

Mark trips on something as they walk, something big and solid that he doesn’t think was there a few seconds ago. 

Okay, he falls. He falls to his knees and Jeno gasps and kneels down to check on him.

“Hyung, you have to be careful! It’s dangerous in- Hmph!” Anything that Jeno was going to say is cut off by the crashing of their mouths together. It takes Jeno so off guard that a surge in magic energy turns out all the lights. The plants shriek, half in glee and half in fear, and it makes Jeno gain enough awareness to pull back and turn them back on.

“I’m sorry,” he says quickly, panicking. “I’m sorry, I-”

“Jeno,” Mark laughs. “It’s okay. I’m not upset. But, did that plant push us together?”

“Huh?” Jeno says, turning around until he’s eye level with some vines. His eyes narrow.

“Azazel,” he hisses, and the plants laugh and laugh. It sounds like the laugh track of an old sitcom, and the clashing pitches of their laughter give Mark chills. He’s always getting chills in this dimension. Everything just feels slightly off to him, doesn’t sit well with his humanness. 

As they’re regaining their composure, Jeno’s eyes go white entirely, no pupil to be seen. He freezes in place.

“I almost dropped the moon,” he says, chest heaving. Mark shrugs. 

“Stranger things could happen,” he says. Jeno grins. His eyes are back to normal.

“They happen all the time,” 

“DINNER IS DONE!” comes Renjun’s voice. Telepathy. It blasts through their brains and leaves a lingering feeling like a concussion. They groan and grip their heads.

“He said we’d have to fend for ourselves,” Mark says, still wincing.

“You know he’d never do that to us. He’s said that for centuries.” Jeno says, smiling.

  
  
  
  


As he sits at the table, Mark can’t help but notice the strange expression on Renjun’s face. He looks troubled, and pensive.

“Renjun?” Mark speaks up, wanting to help. “Is everything...okay? Is there...spell trouble?” That makes Donghyuck snort, but Jeno gives him a look.

“No, nothing like that,” Renjun says. He lifts up a glass dish, covered in foil, and sets it in front of Mark. 

“I tried to make this for you. Food from back home?” Mark’s expression softens, peeling back the foil. Kimchi fried rice. Renjun looks embarrassed.

“It might taste sort of weird. I used a little magic to ferment the cabbage quickly.” Mark laughs.

“It’ll be perfect. It’s perfect.”

“I just thought...We don’t know how long you’ll be here. I thought you might miss it.” 

“Thank you, Renjun. Seriously.” He wills his eyes not to water. Renjun grins, and says nothing more of it. 

The moon is a radiant and sentient presence in the window, shining on all of them. 


End file.
